Featuring: The Nomad Principle by Crispin Rodrigues (2019) Math Paper Press
To customers at a bookstore, the cover of The Nomad Principle is reminiscent of both the recent image made of the Messier 87 black hole or the YA cult classic The Hunger Games. This imprint of the radiant and lively ring of fire only teases at the hard-hitting topics that Crispin Rodrigues explores in his second poetry collection. From his personal experience at different places around the world to heartwarming revelations, The Nomad Principle is the personal diary of a globetrotter who hails from a melting pot of cultural backgrounds.
A Beginner’s Guide to Geography
“Everything looks different
from the ground up: the earth
supported by the gravity of hands,
Atlas-like, a domain of the faithful”
- The Empress of Handstands (Pg 42)
Reading The Nomad Principle, I cannot help but imagine William Morgan Sheppard’s iconic announcer voice in the Civilization series of games. There are so many allusions to local excursions, traveling and movement that the book feels like a map of predetermined plans, playing out step-by-step in front of me.
The most memorable poem about traveling to me is ‘Midnight Trail, December 2016’ (Pg 28), a poem in which Rodrigues reflects upon his experiences in China. In it, he recounts “rushing away from putonghua” and “being dragged across the moonless road blind, without headlights on”. These two images evokes the ubiquitous sense of helplessness many of us feel when traveling to a foreign country. This emotion is carefully strung into the rest of the poem, and concludes with a starkly gentle image - “Watch me crawl up the stairs, this snail out of its shell, curled tightly in sleep.” This poem is a clear indicator of Rodrigues’ ability to invite readers into a familiar vulnerability in a highly personal narrative. It almost feels like I was teleported into a hapless holiday for $16.
In contrast, Rodrigues’ poems about growing up in Singapore are tinted with a homely nostalgia. In ‘Jaudi’ (Pg 8), Rodrigues tells the story of a grandmother whose memory has failed, allowing her only to remember the old buildings near Little India where she once lived. In ‘Orange Peel’ (Pg 14), the grandmother makes her appearance again, this time at a Chinese New Year house visit. She blesses the persona and his girlfriend, her well-wishes described as “a wedding card”. By following the clues Rodrigues leaves behind, it is possible to uncover poignant yet painful narratives through the shadowed cast of characters. It is safe to say this book, while mostly about traveling, has been strongly shaped by Rodrigues’ experiences in Singapore.
The poems in The Nomad Principle take place in a continually shifting space, whether in Singapore, overseas or in an alternate universe. It is this never-ending metamorphosis of backdrops that holds the collection together in a compelling though loosely-threaded grip.
A Poet’s Guide to Art
“She tests the water with her toes. It is perfect.
They float on their backs, white bellies, with expectation,
Like corpses baking in the sun waiting for the buzzards,
She laughs at the length of their beards.”
- A Virgo Learns About Water, after Whitman (Pg 43)
A secondary theme that is briefly explored in The Nomad Principle is Rodrigues’ use of poetry as a method of responding to other poets and artists. It is clear that Rodrigues is heavily inspired by the works he consumes around him, whether it be Vincent Van Gogh’s visual masterpieces or Singaporean poet Alvin Pang’s iconic verses. He sometimes finds a way to take a unique perspective on their work, thereby making up for the potential lack of context. Take his response to Van Gogh’s ‘Wheatfield with Crows’ (Pg 13) for instance, and the opening line that immediately sets a dramatic tone for the poem - “The birds are conspiring again”. I am transported into an odd conference room with focus shifting between the birds and their surroundings, showcasing Rodrigues’ ability to create a compelling speculative scenario, nestled in a punchy yet powerful narrative. The poem ends as fully and strongly as it began: “The grass / hides the dead, preserving leftover conversations / for cats prowling in pitches after dark”.
Though some of Rodrigues’ responses to art was stunning, there were some others that fell flat in their ability to take on the subject matter. His response to Bill Moran and Carlina Duan (Pg 5) almost made me fling the book off Tan Tock Seng Hospital as I read the unfortunately punny first line - “She seeks sandstorks by the seashore”. There were other poems which I felt did not resonate as strongly, such as ‘Mad Love’ (Pg 10) which namedrops Harley Quinn and The Joker’s relationship without sufficient context to fully understand the relationship with the persona. Rodrigues’ poems can sometimes be a hit and miss, and that may be a main deterrent for potential readers of this book.
Final Impressions
The Nomad Principle is an example of a new generation of emerging voices in Singaporean poetry. Newer initiates of Singaporean poetry (like me) should expect to spend some time solving the puzzle behind poems with more obscure references, some of which may not have a rewarding payoff. All things considered, it is a fine read for those who are lost and would like to feel the nostalgia of home.
The Nomad Principle is available at leading Singapore bookstores and online here.
